Kennel under bed storage T@b 400 - plumbing questions

d_v

We travel with four dogs, three are small. I want to convert our under bed storage into a kennel. Our 2021 400 has a chase for electrical and plumbing where the door would go. I want to move the electrical high and have it lay flat and move the plumbing low and that would become a step over (enclosed). What problems could I encounter creating the new U for the plumbing? 8 L fitting would create new leak points, the low spot would create a freeze point. Anything else? I saw some other spots that would be freeze points too, I guess that’s why you winterize.

AUTiger83

For the PEX lines, rather than add all the angle fittings, you may be able to cut it, and  splice in a 6"(?) section, and just "swoop" the lines down lower.

And/or, depending on the configuration beyond the side walls, elongate the holes in those cabinet walls, lowering the PEX lines a few inches. 

d_v

I like the swoop. The sides are either fixed or have 90s that would be stressed if where the penetration in the wall was changed. I’m now thinking about the nicest way to cut the door so that I could cover it back in the event it needed to look stock.

AUTiger83

The prettiest cut would be to (1) first cut a hole slightly too small with a jigsaw. (2) Then add blue painter's tape on the outside face. (3). Hot glue 4 boards exactly matching where you want the opening to be.  (4). Use a pattern bit (or a collar) in a small router to trim the opening perfectly.  Leave the radiused corners left by the router. It will look somewhat like the CNC'ed cutouts on the upper open shelves.  (5) Optional:  iron on edge banding and trim it.  (6) Polyurethane. 

d_v

My router is too big to make the pass along the floor. I was hoping to get about 1 1/2” from the floor, but the distance from the router edge to the bit is more than that.

manyman297

Do you have a small compact router? My Makita could probably get 1 1/2” from the bottom. Definitely couldn’t use a full size router there. 

AUTiger83

I have one of these compact routers from Dewalt, but I also have a corded version just like it (old).  All the major tool brands have an equivalent compact router, including Ryobi.  So if you decide you need one, pick the brand matching your battery supply.  The brands all pretty equivalent

FYI:  Center of bit to edge of acrylic base is 2" on this router.  So you wouldn't be able to get closer to the floor than perhaps 1.75" unless you modified the base or fabricated your own base (plywood with a few holes).

As a side note, I have both a fixed base and a plunge base for it.  I think the plunge base came with the older corded router.  Luckily, Dewalt made the bases interchangeable between the corded and cordless routers. 

AUTiger83

d_v

I was watching youtube reviews of those for a few hours yesterday. Not one of them measured the bit center to the edge of the base. Thank you for letting me know the measurement! I’ll stop by HD/Lowes and check. The Makita did look like the smallest. 

AUTiger83

I think all the brands are going to have similar dimensions. 

d_v

The Makita and Hitachi were 1/4” shorter than the others. Hitachi is what I had a battery for so I got that this week and a couple 1/8 bits. I made a jig and tested it about four times on scrap ply I had, resized it I finally got the nerve today. My wife liked it so no divorce this week. I still need to paint the inner part, get magnets to hold the door when it’s not in kennel mode and figure out the kennel door but the hole is done, the plumbing is extended and the electrical fits in the channel.  

manyman297

Looks great. You’re a braver man than me. I put a bigger kitchen sink in our 400 and it took me some time to work up the nerve to cut that hole larger (using a round template) and you don’t even see the hole once the sink is installed. Kudos.

d_v

Yeah, worst case would have been really bad, that panel would be very difficult to replace. Your sink looks great!

manyman297

@d_v Thanks!

xdr

What a clever idea! Nicely done. How do you take the door on and off? 

d_v

I should know next week. Having a nice looking hole was a big enough win for me for this week. Most likely magnets and a pull the does not use require drilling thought the front. I’m looking for a soft/folding kennel with a door the right size so I can use it for the dog door. 

AnOldUR

Did something similar for shoe storage ...

d_v

I ended up replacing the pex from end to end. The extra joints were bugging me and I had the patched length to give me the needed measure. I added two magnet catches and some clear 1/8 stick on spacers. The dog door is a portable kennel door I cut the front off of and sandwiched in the back. I’m a bit concerned about air flow so I may use a wood dowel across the center instead of the zippered one. 

manyman297

Looks pro!